Customer Reviews

Wrestling Sturbridge

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A Review by Daniel

The main characters you will read about are Ben and Al. Ben and Al have been rivalries in the sport of wrestling. Both of them were a natural 135 pounds in weight. Ben is now a senior and knows that this is the year he is going to go all of the way to the state championship. But what does Ben have to do to achieve this goal? Will he actually beat the number one contender in high school wrestling? Everyone in the small town of Sturbridge thinks that Ben has a slim chance with Al. The only person thinks he is going to win is himself.

This book is actually one of the best books I have ever read. It was full of action and it always kept me on my toes. For an example, the author made it seem like you were actually watching the intense action of the crowd when a Sturbridge wrestler pinned a guy. Another thing I liked about the book is that it was very easy to follow. It wasn't a confusing book at all. You can always tell when Ben is either talking to his friends or just to himself. If you are a wrestler, you can kind of relate to the book because being out there on the mats is very intense and also can be devastating when you lose. It also talks about how many points takedowns are and all of the other rules of wrestling. One thing I didn't like about the book was the ending. Maybe to some people they might like the ending, but I kind of wanted to know what happened after Ben was done with high school. It just left me hanging there at the end.

I would definitely recommend this book to young adults. This book is very energetic, exciting, and suspenseful. The only reason why I wouldn't want you to read this book is because it has some language that some parents might not be to fond of it. In the other hand, if you do get the chance to read it, I would highly recommend it.

I read Wrestling Sturbridge, but this sounds like the same book (maybe an earlier edition) I have 4 sons who wrestle and anyone who loves the sport of wrestling knows the joys and heartaches. Especially for those athletes who are not the Varsity, A-Team, or Champions - it certainly teaches about the desire to win and wanting to have a spot on the team!

A good story about a boy who decides to challenge his own best friend in order to achieve some of his personal goals. I liked it, but my personal favorite book about high school wrestling, more realistic about the sport and with higher stakes for the hero, is "Takedown."

Listed as a book for young adults, "Wrestling Sturbridge" is a novel that is great for fans of all ages. I was 19 when I read it, and I still got a kick out of it. You will not be able to put this book down as you get engulfed in the story of a High School Senior who is looking to make his mark in a town that is wrestling crazy. The only thing that stands in the way of glory is his teammate and friend. The most entertaining read since "Vision Quest,"

Ben, a high school senior and varsity wrestler is starting to realize that his future is pretty bleak. His hometown of Sturbridge, PA is small and dismal and known only for it's Wrestling team and the cinder block factory. So in his last season of wrestling, ben shakes off the fear and challenges the status quo. He chooses not to continue as the training partner of his best friend, Al(the wrestling teams best hope for a state title: instead Ben makes a bit for the title. Robert Cormier writes of the novel: "Ben wrestles no only his high school opponents but with the big issues of life and love and the choices a teenager must make." You won't be able to stop turning pages of this one.

Also try _Shots on Goal_ by the same author

Ben and his three friends have been a solid group since middle school. They started out wrestling together when they were that young, and their dream was always to wrestle for the high school team and perhaps lead their team to state championships in four different weight classes. Wrestling is a huge sport--the only sport that matters--in the town of Sturbridge, though, and many other boys have had the same dream. Ben and his friends think that they have the drive to make it, though.

Suddenly it is senior year, and they seem to be living the dream. Well, all except Ben. The previous year it had seemed like he and his friends would rule four consecutive weight classes. Then one of his friends gained weight and moved up into Ben's class, and Ben can't seem to beat him. He can't gain enough weight in muscle to move up beyond his friends, and he can't lose enough weight to drop a class without being too weak to wrestle at all. It is beginning to look to Ben like he may not wrestle this season--unless he is able to beat his friend in a match for the slot on the team. Will Ben have the drive and the ability to earn a varsity position? When his focus is drawn to a new girlfriend, will wrestling even matter to him anymore?

I liked the relationship between Ben and his father, and especially the odd gift Ben's father gives him at the end of the book. I also liked the description of Sturbridge; it was very well set up in this book. I liked the way each chapter started with lists of things that were important to know about Ben, and I especially liked the unpredictable ending.

I didn't really understand the relationship between Ben and Kim. It seemed that all of a sudden they were dating pretty seriously with no real lead-in or explanation.

Rich Wallace's WRESTLING STURBRIDGE is the best young adult novel you are likely to read...and a darn good novel period (regardless of age demarcations). I think I've given away at least 10 copies of this book to nieces and nephews over the years and every one of them loved it. Along with STONEWALL'S GOLD, WRESTLING STURBRIDGE proves that the YA genre is no longer the domain of hacks and scribes who have failed at other genres. There is some terrific fiction out there for discriminating teens and tweeners and I would put STURBRIDGE at the very top of the pile.

Here comes a team of lean mean wrestling machines! They are going to Sturbridge for a wrestling match. Who will win? Will Benny the main character or his friend al win? You'll see who wins in the book Wrestling Sturbridge by Rich Wallace. Benny is an athletic teenager that cant beat his friend Al, or will that change.
He has 2 more friends on his wrestling team Digit and Hatcher. They are good wrestlers but not good enough to beat Benny or Al. They hooked up as a wrestling team ever since they started. Who will win you'll see in this fabulous book Wrestling Sturbridge. This exciting book is very good so you should read it.
This wrestling team was friends or will that change when benny an al have to wrestle each other and become enemies wrestling for king of the mat. So get to reading the best wrestling book around.

Wrestling Stubridge was a good book.I really liked this book because i am a wrestler.I am on the Kumph Middle School wrestling team so i new a little about what they were talking about in some parts of the book.Tjis book was cool in the middle because Ben's(star of the book)dad robbed a house, because they are a little poor. I also like this book because it is kind of like me and my friend we are the same weight and we always say that one of us is better than the other and we compete against eachother like Ben and Al(state champion) do throught the story.

I found this book to be a good one for high school kids in sports. It's a bit simple, but shows in a few chapters the life of a srong-willed young boy in search of victory on the mat. I like how it doesn't falsify the heroism in sport, but showcases a realistic approach. For a more literary and harrowingly truthful novel about wrestling, though, I much preferred PINS by Jim Provenzano. It delves further into the trials of weight-cutting, homophobia in sports and larger issues facing kids.